Automatic washing, rinsing, and drying machine



Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ETAL 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE 12 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 1, 1943 nz E'rz Era Pen-e 00420 Gimp/10F.

lurflse ell/GEE. W

Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ET AL 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING; AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet 2 Para-e [Tau/rep (Pam/0F: Lurh'ae Envsze.

' Sept. 5; 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ETAL AUTOMATIC WASHING, 'RmsiNc, AND DRYING MACHINE 12 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 43 IOETEE l oomeo anal/0F. Ll/TNEIZ BIA/6:42

Sept. 5, 1950 P. a GELDHOF ETAL AUTOIIATIO WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet 4 Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GEL'DHOF ETAL AUTOIIATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE l2 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 21, 1943 5 Parse 5220420 6'42 0:10P.

tar/15a BIA/05.

Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF EI'AL AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE I2 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed June 21, 1946 O O O OO OO O O r-u/Em arr-'5 Parse fiumeo 62-4000 Larwae 10652.

Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ETAL 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet 7 IDETEE flaw/Q0 6220/1 01 Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF EI'AL 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet 8 PETEE Sou/@420 6220/10.- L 077158 rem/6E8 Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ET AL AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE 12 SheetsShe-et 9 Filed June 21, 1943 Ryan SP5 Parse 20400 627.0110:

tun/52 Envaae Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ET AL u'romuvrm WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 l2 Sheets-Sheet 10 Sept. 5, 1950 E. GELDHOF :rm. 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet l1 Ji 4 '5 9", w

PETE/2 504490 61510001. LVTIIE'R Emma-e.

Q AZZM 5.

Sept. 5, 1950 P. E. GELDHOF ETAL 2,521,159

AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Filed June 21, 1943 12 Sheets-Sheet 12 MINUTES 37.5 SECOND IMPULSES AGITATOR VALVE l VALVE 2 PUMP EXTRACTOR VALVE 2 AGITATOR PUMP EXTRACTOR MOTOR CONTROL Par-:2 5042a anal/oh dun/5e Ewaae.

Patented Sept. 5, 1950 AUTOMATIC WASHING, RINSING, AND DRYING MACHINE Peter Eduard Geldhof and Luther Ringer, St. Joseph, Mich., assignors to Nineteen Hundred Corporation, St. Joseph, Mich a corporation of New York Application June 21, 1943, Serial No. 491,618

8 Claims. 1

This invention relates to an automatic washing, rinsing and drying machine. More particularly, the instant invention is concerned with a domestic or household machine which is completely automatic in its operation in the washing, rinsing and drying of clothing or other articles to be cleansed.

It is the purpose of such apparatus as that to which the present invention pertains to reduce the burdensomeness of laundering or cleaning processes and to obviate the necessity of constant attention on the part of the operator to the apparatus in the course of its operation. The novel machine is entirely automatic to the extent that the operator is enabled to set the controls therefor to instigate the washing operation, leave the same, and return at any later period with the clothing or other articles to be cleansed completely washed, rinsed and dried.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic washing, rinsing and drying machine having the above highly desirable characteristics.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel automatic washing machine which is economical to manufacture, simple to operate, substantially free from noise and vibration, and yet rugged and reliable in use.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel method of and means for electrically controlling certain of the operations comprising the sequence performed by the automatic washing, rinsing and drying machine,

The present invention also contemplates as a further object a novel form of fluid responsive control mechanism for controlling the fluid level in the apparatus as well as starting and stopping certain oi the operations associated with the fluid level which are to be performed by the automatic washing, rinsing and drying machine.

Still other objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description of two embodiments of the present invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is an isometric view of the washing machine cabinet;

Figure 2 is an elevation of the washing machine with parts of the cabinet removed to illustrate the operating relationship of the several parts of the apparatus;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section through the machine substantially along the line III-III of Figure 2 and looking downwardly;

Figures 4 and 5 together form a vertical section through the machine of Figure 2, Figure 4 being the upper portion of the machine with 2 parts broken away, and Figure 5 being the lower portion of the machine, with parts in elevation and broken away;

Figure 6 is a plan view with the top of the cabinet removed and part of the tub broken away to assist in demonstrating the orientation of the several parts of the apparatus, and to illustrate the mounting for the tub;

Figure, '7 is an elevation of the pump unit and the control means therefor employed in the removal of the fluid from the tub;

Figure 8 is a substantially vertical crosssection through the pump unit of Figure 7 to illustrate the controlmechanism therefor in greater detail;

Figure 9 represents a partial elevation of the control mechanism for the pump unit;

Figure 10 is a plan view with parts omitted for the sake of clearness as seen from the line X--X in Figure 8;

Figure 11 is a plan view of the fluid responsive control mechanism associated with the washing machine for controlling the fluid level in the tub and other associated operations;

Figure 12 is a vertical section through the fluid responsive control mechanism of Figure 11 as seen from the line XII-XII therein with parts in elevation; 1

Figure 13 is a partial vertical section of the lower end of the fluid responsive control mechanism of Figure 11 to show the association of the base of the tub and the connection for the control mechanism;

Figure 14 is a partial elevation with parts broken away of the supporting member by means of which the tub and associated operating mechanism of the washing machine is flexibly suported from the cabinet;

Figure 15 is a fragmentary sectional view at an enlarged scale showing the upper end of the tub, the extractor and the collar member associated therewith in disassembled relation;

Figure 16 is a partial vertical section taken through the cover of the washing machine cabinet to show the lid construction;

Figure 17 is a partial sectional view illustrating another embodiment of means for supplying the cleansing fluid to the apparatus at the uper end thereof;

Figure 18 is a partial elevation of a portion of the interior of the washing machine to show the outlet end of the fluid supply means of Figure 1'7;

Figure 19 represents an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a corner of the cover of the washing machine cabinet showing the control knob for regulating the automatic temperature controlled mixing valve for supplying fluid at the proper temperature to the washing machine.

Figure 20 is a vertical section as seen from the line XXXX in Figure 19 to show the mounting for the fluid temperature control means;

Figure 21 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a corner of the cover of the washing machine cabinet showing the timer control knob with a part broken away to show the construction thereof;

Figure 22 is a vertical section substantially along the line XXIIXXII in Figure 21 with parts in elevation;

Figure 23 is a view of the several cam disks for the timer mechanism in disassembled relation in their respective angular positions relative to each other;

Figure 24 is a diagrammatic view of the electrical control circuit for the washing machine;

and

Figure 25 is a chart illustrating the beginning and end of each cycle of operation of the several component parts of the automatic washing machine.

Figures 1 to 16 and 19 to 25, inclusive, of the drawings, illustrate one embodiment of the present invention. The external appearance of the automatic washing, rinsing and drying machine hereinafter referred to simply as a washing machine is shown in Figure 1. The apparatus as illustrated includes, in general, a cabinet 40 which houses the entire mechanism and control system therefor. The cabinet 49 comprises a cover 4|, a front panel 42, side panels 43, and a rear panel 44 (see Figure 3).

The cover 4| is provided with a hinged lid 45 to form the closure member for an opening 46 in said cover 4| through which the clothes or other articles to be cleansed may be introduced to the machine. The lid 45 is so disposed with respect to the opening 46 that it will be flush with the surface of the cover 4| when it is in its closed position. One or more metal straps 41 pivotally disposed in the mountings 49 secured to the under side of the cover 4| serve to provide a hinged mounting for the lid 45 with respect to the cover 4|.

A depression 49 formed in the surface of the cover 4| provides access to a hand grip 50 affixed to one edge of the lid 45 opposite its hinged mounting. When the lid 45 is raised, the metal straps 41, by virtue of their arcuate form, will hold the lid 45 in tilted relation to the cover 4| as said metal straps 41 contact the rolled bead of the opening 45. A cushion member or bumper 52 disposed in a socket 53 in the under side of the lid 45 and adjacent to the hand grip 5| thereon, may advantageously be provided to support the lid 45 against the .base of the depression 49 formed in the cover 4| when the lid is in closed position.

In the rear right-hand corner of the cover 4| is disposed a control knob 54 which provides a means for manually operating the automatic temperature control mixing valve. This mixing valve, which will be described in greater detail hereinafter, serves to provide for the introduction of cleaning fluid, in this case, water, at the proper temperature to insure proper cleansing of the article to be laundered. In the front right-hand corner of the cover 4| is th main control knob 55 for the automatic timer. The length of the washing cycle may be predetermined and set within certain limits by the manual adjustment of the control knob in a manner to be described in detail hereinafter.

It will .be noted that both the knob 54 and the knob 55 are shown as being depressed below the surface of the cover 4| so that they provide no obstruction to the operator in the introduction of the articles to be laundered to the machine, or their removal therefrom.

The construction of the frame structure of the cabinet 40 will be best understood by reference to Figures 2 to 6, inclusive, of the drawings. The principal frame structure embodies four corner posts 51 to each of which is secured an end of the upper channel members 58 and the lower angle members 59. The channels 58 and angles 59 may be secured in any suitable fashion to the vertical posts 51 but are most advantageously welded to said posts 51.

A portion of the ends of the vertically extending legs of the angles 59 and a portion of the horizontally disposed legs thereof are cut away to form the substantially arcuate segments 55 at the ends of said angles 59 associated with the front panel 42 and rear panel 44 of the cabinet 40 which are disposed in overlapping relation to similarly formed segments 6| of the angles 59 which are associated with the side panels 41, as will be readily apparent from Figure 3 of the drawings. Each pair of overlapping segments Ill and SI are apertured to receive the bolt 82 forming part of the foot 53 which is secured to the angles 59 as by means of the nut 54.

The uppermost edge of each of the panels 42, 43 and 44 is advantageously bent so as to flt over the uppermost flange of the channels 58 to assist in mounting the panels upon the frame. On the under side of the horizontally disposed leg of the angles 59 of the frame structure are secured the angle members as will be seen in Figures 2 and 5 of the drawings. The lowermost edges of each of the several panels 42, 43 and 44 may be demountably attached to the angle members 55 as by means of any of several suitable forms of attaching means.

The cover 4| is provided with a downwardly extending flange portion 65 (see Figure 4) which will readily provide a snug flt between the cover 4i and the panels 42, 43 or 44, as the case may be. The cover 4| may be secured to the frame in any suitable fashion, but is provided on the under side thereof with a pair of locating means which take the form of bent strips 61 secured to the under side of the cover 4| and adapted to register with a plurality of blocks 68 of some suitable resilient material so as to render the fit of the cover 4|, with respect to the remainder of the cabinet 40, tight and free from vibration.

The floating base It will be apparent from Figures 2 and 6 of the drawings that substantially all of the operating and control mechanism of the automatic washing machine is supported within the cabinet 49 in substantially floating relation as claimed in a divisonal application, Serial No. 772,630, flled September 8, 1947, and entitled Centrifugal Washing and Drying Machine With Means for Reducing Vibrations." This mounting is effected by providing a substantially horizontally disposed casting or spider 10 which is suspended from the frame structure of the cabinet 40 as by means of a plurality of suspension members 1|. As will best be understood from Figure 6 of the drawings, the spider 10 is provided with a plurality of projecting lugs I2to which the lower ends of the suspension members "II are secured.

Three such lugs 12 and a corresponding number of suspension members II are shown as being provided. two of said suspension members II being disposed at corners of the cabinet 40 while the third suspensionmember H is positioned midway of the ends of the oppositewall of said cabinet 40. A pair of angle members 13 disposed diagonally of the adjacent corners of the cabinet and secured to the web portion of the channels I0 provide means to which the upper ends of the two suspension members II disposed at adjacent corners of the cabinet 40, may be secured. A mounting means I4 is shown as being attached to the web of the channel member II at the right-hand side of the frame. as illustrated in Figure 6, to provide a means to which the upper end of the third of the suspension members I I may be secured.

with a bore 01 in which is suitably secured a vertically extending generally cylindrical center post 00.

The center post 00 is provided adjacent its 5 uppermost end with a sleeve bearing 00 which otherwise suitably secured to said hollow shaft Each suspension member II, which is shown in greater detail in Figure 14 of the drawings, comprises a pair of substantially spherical molded cushioning pads I5 one of which is secured to each end of rod portion 16 as by means of the, threaded studs 11. The studs ll are provided with flat heads 10 which may advantageously be molded into the cushioning pads I5 formed of rubber or other resilient moldable material. The threaded ends of the studs II are adapted to be threaded into the internal bore of the rod portion It to provide endwise adjustment of the suspension members II, lock nuts 10 being provided to retain said studs 11 in their properly adjusted endwise relationship to the rod por- I tion Ii. v

The mounting means It is provided with a substantially hemispherically shaped socket 00 in the face thereof to receive the substantially spherically shaped cushioning pads 15 of the suspension members 'II. A cap member M of a shape corresponding to that of the socket 00 is secured to the face of the suspension means I4 by the bolts 02 and cooperates with said socket 00 to completely enclose the cushioning pads It. A similar substantially hemispherically shaped socket 83 is formed in the under side of the lugs- 12 of the spider I0, and having at the base thereof an aperture 04 through which the studs II associated with the lowermost cushioning pad 15 may extend. A cap 85 cooperates with the socket l2 in the lugs 12 to completely enclose the cushioning pads 15 and is secured to said lugs I2 as by means of the bolts 80 (see Fig. 6). A substantialiy identical construction to that just described is associated with each of the remaining suspension members II thereby providing a free and flexible mounting for the spider 10, thus insuring virtually complete elimination of vibration in the cabinet 40.

The tub, drying basket and agitator Mounted on the upper side of the spider I0 is the tub 88 which comprises a' substantially cylindrical wall 09 and a base portion 00, secured to spider 10 as by means of the bolts 0| and being centrally apertured I to permit the generally cylindrical boss portion 02 of said spider 10 to pass therethrough. An annular shoulder 00 encircling the base of the cylindrical boss 02 cooperates with the gasket 00 and ring 05 secured to said shoulder 93 as by bolts 96 to prevent leakage of the cleansing fluid from the aperture in the base 00 of the tub 00 which accommodates the boss 02. The boss 02 of spider 10 is provided IOI. The collar I02 is provided with a lower tapered portion I03 which serves as a mounting for the supporting member I00 in the upper end of which is inserted a sleeve Illthe internal contour of which corresponds to the tapered portion I03 of said collar I02.

A retaining ring I00 is threaded onto the upper end of the collar I02 and is provided with a tapered portion I01 at its lowermost end which engages the upper end of the sleeve I00 so as to force it against the tapered portion III of said collar I02. The lower. end of supporting member I04 is flared outwardly so as to encircle the uppermost end of the boss 02 of spider 10. The supporting member I04 serves as a mounting for the perforated extractor basket I00 which is secured thereto in any suitable fashion adjacent the flaredend thereof.

The basket I00 is provided with'an opening I00 in the uppermost end thereof and a plurality of perforations H0 in the generally cylindrical wall and the base thereof disposed in suitably spaced relation as shown,in part, in Figure 4' of the drawings. A plate III of substantially disk-like shape is secured to the lowermost end 4 of the supporting member I04 and extends sub-' stantially radially therefrom to contact the bwe of the basket I00 and to serve as a stiife means therefor.

A sleeve bearing H2 is disposed internally oi shaft IOI, said'bearing II2 providing a journal for the vertical shaft III which extends through the bore Ill of the hollow shaft IOI for rotation in concentric relation to the axis of said hollow shaft IOI and the center post 00. The end of shaft H3 which projects beyond the upper end of hollow shaft IOI has a tapered and squared portion H5 on which is secured, as'by means of the bolt 0, an agitator ill of the multiple vane type.

An annular rim IIO, which provides a safeguard against the possibility of the operator inadvertently inserting his hand between the upper end of the basket I00 and the tub 00 when the apparatus is operating and also prevents the escape of the cleansing fluid from the tub 00 in the course of the operation of the machine, is demountably secured to the upper end of the tub 00 as by means of the flexible retaining ring I ll. The retaining ring II! renders it possible to remove said annular rim II8 if for any reason it should be necessary to have access to the basket I00 or for the removal of the same from the tub 00. The annular rim III is provided with a depending portion I20 which is bent downwardly so as to extend within the opening I00 in the upper end of the basket I00.

A substantially funnel-shaped annular member I2I is secured in any suitable fashion to the depending portion I20 of the annular rim II. and

extends upwardly therefrom to a point adjacent- 7 the cover H of the cabinet 40 so as to aid in the introduction to the machine of the clothing or other articles to be laundered as they are passed through the lid 45 of said cover H. A weighted collar I22 which is advantageously disposed about the external periphery of the member I2I is provided to supply added weight to the assembly of operating elements mounted upon the upper side of spider which will tend to reduce the extent of the swinging movement of the freely supported spider 10. The association of the several parts just described will be more readily understood from Figure of the drawings, which illustrates these parts in disassembled relation.

The driving mechanism Turning our attention now to Figures 2 and 3 of the drawings, it will be apparent that the driv- I ing mechanism for actuating the agitator H1 and the basket I08 is suspended from and mounted on the under side of the spider 10. Power is derived from an electric motor I24 which is secured to a bracket I25 by means of the bolts I26. said brackets being suspended from the spider 10 as by means of the bolts I21. The motor I24, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, is of the vertical type and so disposed that its shaft I28 extends through the bracket I25 so as to accommodate the pulley I29. The pulley I29 of the motor I24 is adapted to drive a pulley I30 which actuates the transmission unit I 3|, the pulley I32 for driving the hollow shaft IOI upon which the basket I08 is supported, and the pulley I33 which operates the pump unit I34, all of said pulleys being connected by an endless belt I35.

A drive mechanism containing many features in common with the drive mechanism of the present application is shown and described in the application, Serial No. 787,060, filed November 20, 1947, and entitled Laundering Machine." Our later filed application is a continuation-in-part of our present application, and relates in particular to the support structure for the tub and basket and to the drive mechanism for the basket, as well as to the control for said drive mech anism and for the operating cycles of the machine.

The transmission I 3|, which is illustrated in greater detail in Figures 4 and 5 of the drawings, is supported from the under side of the spider 10 by means of the suspension members I31 which are secured to the bosses I38 on said spider 10 as by means of bolts extending therethrough. The operating mechanism. of the transmission unit I3I is enclosed in a casing comprising upper and lower members I39 and I40, respectively, held together by the bolts MI. The pulley I30 for driving the transmission unit I3I is mounted upon a vertical shaft I42 which extends through the boss I43 projecting from the upper casting I39 of the transmission case and is journaled adjacent its upper end in a sleeve bearing I44 which is press fitted into the bore I45 of the boss I43. The lowermost end of the shaft I42 is supported and Journaled in the boss I46 formed in the wall of the lower casting I40 of the transmission case. A compression spring I41 which surrounds the shaft I42 and abuts the lower end of the sleeve bearing I44 serves to force the washer I43 against a snap-ring I49 which is positioned on the shaft I42 in an annular groove cut therein so as to maintain said shaft I42 in its proper axial disposition.

A plurality of gear teeth III may advantageously be out on the periphery of the shaft I42 to engage a spur gear I52 which is rotatably mounted upon a stub shaft I53 and maintained in proper endwise relation with respect thereto by means of the snap ring I54 which is adapted to engage an annular groove formed on said stub shaft I53. The spur gear I52, through the link or crank arm I55, operates a gear sector I56 which is meshed with a gear I51 rotatably mounted upon the shaft 3 to which the agitator H1 is attached. While the crank arm I55 may be connected to the gear I52 and the gear sector I66 in any suitable fashion, it is advantageously mounted in pivotal relation to a boss portion I53 formed on the web of the gear I52 by means of the bolt I59 which is threaded therein, and at its' other end upon the boss portion I60 formed upon the gear sector I56 being pivotally secured thereto by the bolt I6I. The gear sector I56 is secured to a vertically extending pin I62 which is adapted to oscillate about its longitudinal axis as the gear sector I56 is operated by the crank I 55, due to the eccentric mounting thereof upon the spur gear I52.

As will best be seen in Figure 5 of the drawings, the gear I51 is disposed in axially slidable relation with respect to the vertical shaft H3. The lower hub portion I63 of gear I51 is provided with a plurality of slots I64 extending substantially axially thereof and tapered slightly to fit over the end of a pin I65 which is mounted in shaft II3 so as to extend radially therefrom. The gear I51 is movable axially of the shaft H3 in the manner illustrated in Figure 5 of the drawings in which a fork I66 which registers with an annular groove I61 cut into the upper hub portion I66 of the gear I51 so as to engage or disengage one of the slots I64 in the lower hub portion I63 of said gear I 51 with the radially disposed pin I65 on the shaft H3. The fork I66 is secured to a vertically extending rod I69 which is adapted to slide endwise in the bore I10 of the internal boss I1I formed in the lower casting I46 of the transmission case, and a sleeve I12 mounted in the upper casting I 39 of said transmission case. The rod I69 is advantageously raised and lowered by a control mechanism which will be described in detail hereinafter.

The shaft II3, which, as previously described, is journaled within the bore II4 of the hollow shaft IN, is concentrically disposed within the center post 98 and extends downwardly within the bore 91 of the boss 92 through the spider 16 and into the transmission unit I3I. The lower end of the shaft H3 is journaled in the bore I13 of a boss I14 depending from the lower casting I40. A steel ball I15 which is disposed in the inverted conically shaped base I16 of the bore I13 of said boss I14 serves as a thrust bearing thereby supporting the shaft H3 in proper endwise relation.

On the under side of the top casting I39 of the case enclosing the transmission unit I3I and encircling the shaft I I3 adjacent the point where it extends through said top casting I39 is a packing unit comprising an inverted cup-shaped holder I11 for retaining the packing I16 which serves to prevent the entrance'of dirt, dust or other substances into the transmission case in which the several parts are immersed in a lubricating medium as well as to prevent leakage of the lubricating medium from the case. The packing I13 is retained in the cupsshaped holder I11 as by means of a disk member I19 held in place by a compressed spring I urged thereagainst by a washer I3I disposed endwise of the shaft II3 by means of the pin I32 therein.

A collar I34 is secured to the shaft H3 at a point just above that at which said shaft I I3 extends through the top casting I39 of the case enclosing the transmission unit "I, as by means of the set screw I 33, said collar being .provided with a depending skirt portion I33 which extends downwardly over the opening in top casting I33 through which shaft II3 passes (see Figure The collar I84 acts as a means of supporting the hollow shaft IIII by virtue of the fact that the sleeve bearing I8'I flts into the hollow shaft Ill at its lowermost end and is provided with an annular flanged portion I33 which contacts the upper face of the collar I84. A pulley I32, which, as previously explained, is driven from the motor I24 by means of the endless belt I33, is rotatably mounted about the external periphery of said hollow shaft I3I as by means of the bushing I39 which is press fit into said pulley I32. The pulley I82 is retained in endwise relation to said shaft Illl by means of a snap ring I38 and washer "I which is riveted or otherwise suitably secured to the lower end of shaft I3I and contacts the upper face of the flanged portion I38 of the sleeve bearing I81.

Mounted upon the hollow shaft II" at a point just below that at which it passes through the spider I3 (Figure 4), are a sleeve member I92 and an annular member I93 extending about the outer periphery of the sleeve I92, both of said members being secured to the hollow shaft I3I as by means of the setscrew I94 which is threaded into the radially extending hole I93 in said annular member I83 so as to register with the depression I93 in the outer wall of the hollow shaft I3I. A friction clutch is provided to drive the sleeve IIII and basket I38 from the pulley I32 and a brake is provided to hold the basket I38 from rotation when the clutch is disengaged, as is clearly shown and described in our divisional application, Serial No. 765,200. filed July 31, 1947, and entitled Control and Drive Mechanism for Automatic Washing, Rinsing and Drying Machine so need not herein be described in detail except to point out that they include a flanged member I88 splined 0n the sleeve I92. An annular friction member 283 is secured to the bottom of the flanged portion of the flanged member I98 for engagement with an annular top surface of the pulley I32, to effect driving of a hollow shaft IIII from said pulley.

An annular braking disk 228 encircles the shank of the flanged member I98 and is suitably trunnioned to opposite walls 2 I4 of a clutch shifting member 2I3. Upon disengagement of the clutch, the braking disk 228 is engaged with the bottom surface of a friction disk 283 splined on the shank of the flanged member I98 and yieldably urged toward the braking disk 223. Engagement of the clutch is effected by upward. rocking movement of the member 2I3 about a pivotal pin 2 I8 extending transversely through a vertical rod 2 I5, and having the member 2 I 3 resting thereon. The end of the member 2I3 opposite from the rod 2 I 3 rests on a transverse pin 221 extending through a vertically movable rod 222, which serves to disengage the clutch and move the disk 228 into engagement with the annular friction ring 283, and stop rotation of the hollow shaft IIlI upon upward movement of said rod.

Tub filling and draining mechanism Attention is now directed to the apparatus for filling and draining the tub 38 of the automatic washing machine which will be seen to best advantage in Figures 2, 3, 6, '7 to 10, inclusive, 1'! and 18.

The cleansing fluid, in this case, water, is supplied to the tub 38 under ordinary city main pressure through a temperature control mixing valve 234' and a flexible hose 233 which as will be seen from Figure 6 is connected to an opening in the base 33 of the tub 33. It will be understood that the temperature mixing valve 234 is adapted to receive hot and cold water through intakes 233 and 231, respectively, and to automatically control the relative amount of each so that water of the desired temperature passes through the flexible hose 233 and into the tub 88. The temperature mixing valve will not be shown and described in detail for the reason that any conventional type of valve may be employed. Any one of three desired temperatures of water may be employed in the apparatus ranging from warm to hot depending upon the setting by the operator of the control knob 34 mounted on the cover 4i which actuates the control means 238 (see Figures 19 and 20) for controlling the proper setting of the mixing valve 234.

The base 33 of tub '33 is provided with a sump 238 having a connection 248 to which the pump unit I34 is connected by means of a flexible hose connection 24I for withdrawing the water from the tub 33. The pump unit I34 may take any suitable form such, for example, as the centrifugal type pump illustrated in Figures 8 and 8 of the drawings. A bracket 242 to which the pump I34 is secured as by means of a plurality of bolts 243 is suspended from a pair of bosses 244 formed on the under side of the spider I3 and secured thereto by the bolts 243. The inlet connection of pump I34 designated by reference character 243 is connected with the sump 239 by the flexible hose 24L. The water from the tub 88 passes through the inlet connection 243 into the chamber 241 to be discharged from outlet 243 by the action of the impeller 233, the outlet 248 being provided with a flexible hose connection 23I for carrying the discharged water to a suitable drain or house catch basin (not shown).

The pump unit I34 is adapted to be actuated by the pulley I33 driven from the motor I 24 by means of the belt I33. An automatic disconnecting means is adapted to direct the operation of the pump I 34. The pump I34 will, of course, be halted during those stages of the operation of the automatic washing machine when it is desired to retain the water in the tub 38. In the pump unit I34, as illustrated in Figure 8 of the drawings, a vertical shaft 232 is Journaled in upper and lower sleeves 233 which are press fitted into the bore of a vertically extending boss 234 forming part of the pump casting 233. The impeller 233 is secured in any suitable fashion to the lowermost end of the shaft 232 while the pulley I33 is freely rotatably mounted about said shaft 232 at a point adjacent its uppermost end. A bushing 233 serves as the hub member by which the pulley I33 is mounted about a sleeve member 231 provided with an annular flanged portion 238 at the lowermost end thereof for supporting said pulley I33 in proper axial relation to the shaft 232.

Adjacent the uppermost end of the shaft 232 is disposed a collar 239 having a set screw 233 which 73 serves to secure both the collar 238 and the sleeve 251 to the shaft 252. About the external periphery of the collar 256 and extending downwardly so as to encircle the shank portion 26I of the pulley I33 is a helical spring 262 which is disposed between a groove 263 in the collar 256 and a shoulder 264 at the base of the shank portion 26I of the pulley III. The end of the spring 262 ad- Jacent the shoulder 264 is provided with a bent-up or hook portion 265 which extends substantially radially with respect to the axis of the vertical shaft 252. The hook portion 265 is adapted to contact a vertically extending lever arm 266 which is secured in any suitable fashion about the horizontal rod 261 which is adapted to be pivoted about the axis of its mounting in the ears 266 formed on the bracket 242. An arm 216 secured to the horizontally disposed rod 261 and adapted to extend through an opening 2" in the bracket 242 is connected by a pin 214 to the plunger 212 of a solenoid 213 which is mounted upon the bracket 242 as by means of the bolts 215.

As will best be understood from Figure 9 of the drawings, the lever arm 266 is adapted to be contacted with the hook portion 255 of the spring 262 during that interval of the operation of the apparatus when it is desired that the pump should not be operated. Contact between the lever arm 266 and the hook portion 265 will permit the pulley I33 to be rotated about the sleeve member 251 thus preventing the shaft 252 from being actuated. The solenoid 213 is provided with suitable electrical connections (not shown) which are connected into the main control circuit for the automatic washing machine so as to cause said solenoid-213 to be energized when, in accordance with that part of the cycle of operations being performed by the automatic washing machine, the water is to be removed from the tub 66.

When the solenoid 213 is energized, the plunger 212 thereof, which normally occupies the position shown in solid lines in Figure 9, is caused to be raised thereby lifting the end of the arm 216 attached thereto which rotates the rod 261 about its horizontal axis so as to tilt the lever arm 266 out of contact with the hook portion 265 in such fashion that the several parts will thereafter occupy the positions indicated in dotted lines. In the course of this operation, as the hook portion 265 is disengaged from the lever arm 266, the spring 262 will be caused to tighten about the shank portion 26I of the pulley I33 so as to effectively lock together the collar 256 and the pulley I33 whereby the shaft 252 will be rotated and the impeller 256 of the pump unit I34 will be actuated causing the water to be withdrawn from the tub 66. It will be understood that upon the completion of the pumping operation and under the influence of an a propriate control circuit of the type hereinafter described in detail, the several parts of the apparatus will be returned to their original positions.

By reason of local restrictions which prohibit the use of any apparatus in which water is to be stored for cleansing or other operations being connected to the water supply system, it may be preferable to provide an alternate method and means for introducing cleansing fluid into the automatic washing machine of the present invention. To this end, the means illustrated in Figures 17 and 18 of the drawings including a nozzle 216 mounted upon the inner periphery of the annular member HI and disposed adjacent to the cover 4i of the apparatus may advantageously be employed. The nozzle 216 is provided with a flared outlet end 211 the back wall of which co- 12 operates with a substantially semi-circular vertically disposed flange portion 216 to position the nozzle 216 so that its threaded portion 216 will extend through an aperture 266 in the annular member HI and the associated weighted ring I22. A look nut 26I is threaded onto the portion 216 of the nozzle 216 so as to mount said nozzle 216 in fixed position on the interior of the annular member I2I. A female connection 262 which is adapted to be secured to the threaded portion 216 of the nozzle 216 provides a means for connecting thereto a flexible hose connection 235a. which in this embodiment takes the place of the flexible hose connection 235 previously explained as being connected to the base of the tub 66. The flexible hose connection 235a is connected to the the outlet side of the mixing valve 235 so that as the water is supplied thereby it is introduced at the upper end of the tub 66 through the nozzle 216.

Float switch mechanism Attention is now directed to Figures 11 to 13, inclusive, of the drawings in which is illustrated one form of mechanism which may advantageously be employed to indicate and electrically control the amount of water contained in the tub 66 of the automatic washing machine of the present invention. The mechanism in question is shown as being disposed internally of the cabinet 46 and in the front right-hand corner of the cabinet 46 adjacent to but below the point at which the timer knob 55 is mounted in the cover H.

The water level control mechanism indicated generally by the reference character 264 includes a vertically extending generally cylindrical member 265 which has an opening 266 at its uppermost end and is provided with a closure member 261 secured internally thereof at its lowermost end. The cylindrical member 265 is supported as by means of the brackets 266 and bolts 266 to one of the corner posts 51. A connection 266 extending through the wall of the cylindrical member 265 is provided adjacent the closure member 261 at the base of said cylindrical member 265 for connection with a similar connecting means 26I in the vertical wall of the sump 236 formed in the base 66 of the tub 66 as by means of a flexible hose 262 (see Figure 6).

Disposed within and adapted to move in a direction parallel to the vertical axis of the cylindrical member 265 is a, pair of float members which may, for the purposes of illustration, take the form of diving bells 263 and 264. The lowermost diving bell 264 is provided with a centrally disposed boss portion 265 in the dome thereof to which is secured a vertical rod 266. The rod 266 is provided at its uppermost end with a hook portion 261 extending through an aperture in the lever arm 266 of a toggle switch 266 mounted as by means of the bolts 366 upon the upper bracket 266.

The upermost diving bell 263 is provided with a centrally disposed boss portion 362 in the internal bore of which is press fltted or otherwise suitably secured a tubular member 363 which may advantageously extend both above and below the upper and lower extremities of the diving bell 263 in order to serve as a guide means for the diving bell 263 by virtue of its disposition about the rod 266 associated with the lowermost diving bell 264. A connecting means 364 is secured in any suitable fashion to the uppermost end of the boss portion 362 of the upper diving bell 263 and has a hook portion 365 which is adapted to be connected to the arm 888 of a toggle switch 881 mounted as by means of the bolts 808 upon the uppermost bracket 288.

By virtue of the construction just described for the water level control mechanism 284, the upper diving bell 288 and the lower diving bell 284 are free to move independently of each other within the interior of the cylindrical member 285 under the influence of the water admitted to said cylindrical member 285 from the tub 88 of the automatic washing machine. By virtue of the fact that the cylindrical member 285 is connected directly with the tub 88, the cleansing fluid which normally contains a detergent forming suds, scum and the like therein is admitted directly to said cylindrical member 285, and it may be advantageous to employ means for occasionally flushing out the interior of said cylindrical member 285 to prevent the continual accumulation of such deposits therein as the cleansing fluid is drained therefrom. To this end, a small pipe 308 supported by the uppermost bracket 288 and extending downwardly into the opening 288 at the upper end of the cylindrical member 285 may be provided. The pipe 309 is connected as by means of the flexible tubing 3 I to a suitable connection provided upon the mixing valve 234 which supplies a small amount of fresh water to the cylindrical member 285 of the water level control mechanism 284 as the mixing valve 234 is operatedw It will be readily understood that suitable electrical connections (not shown) will be provided for connecting the toggle switches 299 and 381. into the electrical control circuit of the automatic washing machine in order that the switches when actuated by the diving bells 283 and 284 may operate to control the maximum level of the fluid in thetub 88, the starting or stopping of the agitator drive mechanism actuating the agitator II1, controlling the operation of the extractor drive mechanism for the basket I08 and other similar operations in the course of the washing, rinsing and drying cycle, all of which are dependent upon the level of the water in the tub 88 of the automatic washing machine. The control circuit and. its method of directing the operation of the several parts of the apparatus will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

As for the operation of the water level control mechanism 284, itself, it will be understood that as the water is admitted to the tub 88 from the mixing valve 234 either from the bottom or from the top of the apparatus by the means hereinbefore described, the water, by virtue of the interconnection of the cylindrical member 285 with the tub 88, will pass through the connections 280 and 29I and the hose 292 so as to rise within said cylindrical member 285 to a level corresponding to that attained in the interior of the tub 88. As the water rises in the cylindrical member 285 above the closure 281 at the base thereof, air will be entrapped within the domed interior of the lowermost diving bell 284 thereby causing the same to float and move vertically of the cylindrical member 285 when the water reaches a given level therein. In so doing, the rod 298 affixed to the diving bell 284 also moves in an axial direction thereby raising the lever arm 288 of the toggle switch 288. This operation may, or may not, set in motion certain operations dependent upon the water level in the tub 88 to perform certain functions in the operation of the apparatus depending upon 14 the specific setting of the control circuit in a manner to be described hereinafter.

The water admitted to the tub 88 by the mixing valve 284 continues to rise within the cylindrical member 285 after having raised the lowermost diving bell 284 and serves to operate in a similar manner to raise the uppermost diving bell 283 which by virtue of the connection means 304 engaging the lever arm 308 trips the toggle switch 801. The toggle switch 301 may advantageously be connected into the control circuit of the automatic washing machine in such fashion that the mixing valve 234 may be closed to discontinue .the influx of water to the tub 88, the agitator II 1 may be set in motion, in addition to any one or more similar associated steps which may be performed depending upon the character of and the setting for the control circuit employed with the automatic washing machine.

It will be readily understood that the exact reverse of the several operations hereinbefore described in connection with the water level control mechanism 284 will take place when the water is drained from the tub 88 through the sump 238 as by means of the pump unit I34. The several parts of the apparatus will assume their original positions as shown, for example, in Figure 12 of the drawings.

Control foragitator and extractor Attention is next directed to the control mechanism which serves to direct the operation of the agitator drive mechanism and the extractor drive mechanism at the proper intervals as determined by the sequence of steps, to be performed in the operation of the automatic washing machine. This portion of the apparatus is clearly shown and described in our divisional application, Serial No. 765,200, so need only herein be described in suflicient detail to point out that the control mechanism is so arranged as to disconnect the extractor drive mechanism from the basket I08 and connect the agitator drive mechanism to drive the agitator H1 and vice-versa by means of two reciprocably driven sliding bars 3I8 and 335 (Figure 3).

The bar 3I8 is slidably guided in the vertical rod I89 and has a cam surface (not shown) engaging said rod to move said rod I 69 and the pinion I51 vertically to disconnect the pinion I51 from driving engagement with the pin I65 upon movement of said bar in one direction. Upon movement of the bar 3i 8 in an opposite direction the pinion I51 moves downwardly into driving engagement with the pin I to reciprocably drive the shaft H3 and agitator II1.

The bar 335 is slidably guided in the rod 222 and has a cam surface thereon (not shown) engaging said rod, to vertically move said rod in an upward direction upon slidable movement of the bar 335 in one direction and disengage the friction disk 200 from the top surface of the pulley I32. Upon movement of the bar 335 in an opposite direction the rod 22 moves down-- wardly along the cam surface of said bar to effect engagement of the friction member 200 with the pulley I32, and driving or spinning of the extractor I08. The bars 3I8- and 335 are oppositely moved by rocking movement of a mounting 3I2 secured to the pin I52 and oscillated thereby. Two solenoids 321 and 344 are provided to control movement of the respective bars 3I8 and 335 with the oscillating mounting 3I2 (Figure 24). The plungers (not shown) of the solenoids 331 and 366 are slidably connected with the respective bars 316 and 336 in a manner clearly shown in our divisional application, so that when either solenoid is energized a respective bar will be slidably moved with the mounting 3|! for the length of the stroke thereof to a position to allow the respective rod in which it is guided, to move downwardly and thereby cause driving of the respective drive member controlled thereby. When the respective solenoid is deenergized, a respective slidable bar will be moved in an opposite direction for the length of stroke of the mounting 3i3, to elevate the respective rod and disconnect the respective drive member controlled thereby.

The electrical control circuit Attention is now directed to Figures 19 to 25, inclusive, relating to the electrical control circuit which operates to direct the various mechanical operations to be performed by the automatic washing machine which function at predetermined times and for predetermined intervals over a complete cycle of operation. For this purpose, any of several suitable types of timing devices may be employed, such for example, as the timer 363 mounted directly beneath the cover 6| of the cabinet 66 and secured to a bracket 366 which extends diagonally across the front righthand corner of the cabinet being supported from the channel members 66. Inasmuch as the timer per se forms no part of the present invention it has not been illustrated in detail. The timer 363 illustrated herein embodies an electric motor 366 which operates a shaft 366 to which are secured a plurality of cam disks 311 to 366, inclusive.

In the conventional timin mechanism employed in connection with the apparatus of the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, the motor 366 rotates the shaft 366 in a step-bystep action at 37 second intervals. More speciilcally, the construction of the timing mechanism 363 is such that the shaft 366 is rotated through an angle of 5 every 37 seconds.

Secured to the upper end of the shaft 366 is a control knob 66 which includes a central disk 361 which is rovided with a D-shaped slot therein adapted to fit over the end of the shaft 366 on which a flat portion 366 has been provided. An outer ring 366 is disposed about the central disk 361 in slidably mounted relation to the outer periphery thereof and is vertically supported upon a pointer 316 provided with upwardly projecting portions 311 which register with recesses 312 in the under side of said ring 366. The pointer 316 is disposed in proper axial relation with respect to the shaft 366 by the central disk 361 and a washer 313 which is firmly secured to the shaft 366.

As will be apparent from Figure 21, the central disk 361 has a slot 316 out out of the periphery thereof for the purpose of providing a friction clutch arrangement. A pin 316 of a diameter which is slightly less than the maximum width of the slot 316 in which it is disposed but greater than the width of the narrowest portion of said slot operates to permit the shaft 366 to be rotated only in a clockwise direction by the knob 66 through the cooperation of the slot 316 and the pin 316 operating as a clutch. If the knob 66 is attempted to be rotated in a counterclockwise direction, the outer ring 366 rotates freely about the periphery of the central disk 361 and, therefore, does not turn the shaft 366.

As will be presently understood, this arrangement is necessary to prevent damage to the cam disks 311 to 366, inclusive as well as other parts of the apparatus associated therewith which are to be presently described. Moreover, the motor 366 of the timer 363 is adapted to rotate the shaft 366 in a clockwise direction only when viewed from the top.

As may best be seen from the wiring diagram for the control circuit shown in Figure 24 of the drawings in which the cam disks 311 to 366, inclusive, of the timer 363 are illustrated, each cam is provided with a cam follower 36l' to 366, inclusive, mounted on contact arms 366 to 366, respectively. Associated with each of the contact arms 366 and 366 is a pair of stationary contact points 366, 366 and 361, 362, respectively. Contact arms 361 and 366 are provided with stationary contact points 363 and 366, respectively.

In the case of the contact arms 361 and 366, the contact arm will be in engagement with its corresponding stationary contact point whenever the respective cam follower is on a low point of the associated cam disk. Conversely, when the cam follower is upon the high point of its cam disk, the associated contact arm will be out of engagement with the stationary contact point therefor. The operation of the contact arms 366 and 366 is similar to that of the contact arms 361 and 666 with the exception that when the cam followers associated with each of these arms are on the high point of the associated cam disks the contact arms will be in engagement with their respective upper contact points 366 and 361 respectively. The contact arms 366 and 366 will, of course, engage the lower contact points 366 and 362 when their respective cam followers are on low points on their respective cam disks. It will be noted from Figure 23, however, that disks 311 and 318 are also provided with intermediate points which will maintain the contact arms 366 and 366 out of engagement with either of their contact points for certain intervals.

As illustrated in Figure 24, contact arms 366 and 381 are in their uppermost positions since the cam followers 361 and 363 therefor are on the high points "I and 663, respectively, of their respective disks 311 and 316. Contact arm 366 will be in engagement with the contact point 366 while the arm 361 will be supported out of contact with its single contact point 363. Contact arms 386 and 366 are illustrated as being in exactly the opposite relationship to their contact points from that of contact arms 666 and 361. The follower 382 for contact arm 366 is traversing the low point 661 of the disk 316 and, therefore contact arm 366 will be in engagement with the lower contact point 362. Contemporaneously, the follower 366 of the contact arm 366 is on the low point 666 of the disk 366 and thereby permits engagement of the contact arm 366 with its contact point 366.

The shaft 366 of the timer 363 is so mounted that it may be lifted vertically a slight amount without causing disengagement of the cam followers from their associated cam disks. This slight vertical lifting of the shaft 366, however, is sufficient to permit a contact disk 6 mounted upon the shaft 366 to be raised slightly out of engagement with a pair of stationary contacts 6 and 612. Thus, an opportunity is afforded the operator to start the operation of the automatic washing machine at any given point in its ordinary cycle of operation.

The particular configuration of each of the 

